Movable door binder



A. H: DODGE MOVABLE DOOR BINDER Oct. 19 1926.

Filed Dec. 17, 1925 I5 sheat s-Shut 1 INVENTOR ATTO NEYS Oct. 19 1926.

- A. H. DODGE MOVABLELDOGR BINDER Filed Dec. 17, 1923 5 Sheets-Sheet 2QM m M q, g firm ATTOR EYS Patented Oct. 19, 1926.

umrso STATES PATENT FFICE.

ARTHUR H. none'n, or new YORK, N. Y., ASSIGNOR TO THE J. G. WILSONoo'nrona- TION, or new YORK, n. Y., -.A conronn'rrou or VIRGINIA.

MOVABLE noon BINDER.

Application filed December 17, 1923.

This invention relates to doors and is particularly intended to be usedwith sliding 'doors of the fire resisting type. Such doors are usuallyhung on rollers which travel along a track from open to closed positionin which the door overlaps the edges of the doorway it'isdesigned toclose. During a fire, great differences in temperature and air pressurefrequently exist on opposite sides of the closed fire door, tending toforce the door away from the wall at points which are not firmly securedthereto, or even to buckle the door between such points. In eitherevent, the fire goes through the opening and the protective usefulnessof the door is destroyed.

The object of my invention is to provide *a door construction whichshall be more secure against such failure to protect than previous doorshave been. The provision of binders on the wall tohold the front edge ofthe closed door has been known, also that the overhead rollers willsecure the top edge to the wall, but the rear edge of the 535 door hasbeen the weak spot, often being left entirely free to be forced awayfrom the wall during a fire.

An important object of my invention is to provide means for binding therear edge of the door to the wall. Such binding means cannot bepermanently placed, as they would interfere with free opening andclosing of the door. I therefore make the rear edge binders movable, andprovide means responsive to closing movement of the door to operate thebinders to interlock the rear edge of the door and the wall.iCOlTVBISGlY, to prevent interference of the movable binders with thenormal free sliding movement of the door, I provide means responsive toinitial opening movement of the door to disengage the movable bindersfrom the wall and to hold them unlocked While the door is at all open.By this feature I positively. avoid the danger that anyone should belocked in a burning compartment.

' In the drawings illustrating one of the many possible embodiments ofthe invention, Fig. 1 is a front elevation of one type of fire doorequipped with the binders of my invention;

Fig. 2 is a horizontal section on a larger scale, on the line 2A2 ofFig. 1;

Figs. 2- and. at are horiii on e.

Serial No. 681,172.

parts broken away, on the line 3-3 of Fig. 1, Fig. 3 showing the doorclosed and the binder opcrated, while in Fig. 4; the door is not quiteclosed and the movable binder is 1n normal position;

I Fig. 5 is a vertical sectional detail oh the line 55 of Fig. 8,showing the movable binder at'the rear edge of the door;

Fig. 6 is an elevation with parts broken away of a different type ofdoor equipped with movable binders; and

Figs. 7 and 8 are respectively vertical and horizontal sections taken onthe lines 7-7 and 88 of Fig. 6.

Referring to Figs. '1 to 5, a wall 9 has a doorway 10 with a fireresisting door 11 to close it in case of fire. The door has a frame madeup of the channel members 12 joined together as by welding-at the fourcorners. Spaced reinforcing channels 13 extend vertically between thetop and bottom channels, and one or more diagonal tie rods 14.- make theframe a rigid unit. The frame is sheathed by the horizontally extendingsheets 15 which are lapped over the edges of the channel framemembc'rsand firmly united thereto as by spot-welds.

Above the doorway is a track 16 upon which the door is hung by means ofhangers 17 having rollers 18 grooved to travel on the track. The trackmay be horizontal or inclined; in the present example it is shown asinclined so as to close the door when released from its open position inwhich it is held by a chain 19. extends from a bracket 20 at one edge ofthe door, over a sheave 21, and carries suitable counterweights 22. Thechain includes the usual link 23 which fuses in case of fire to releasethe counterweights and thus permit the door to travel down the trackinto its closed position. The movement into closing position may belimited by any suitable abutment, but I prefer to use binders 2d securedto the wall, as by expansion bolts 25, in a position to limit travel ofthe door. Each binder has the usual offset portion 26 which overlies theinner flange of channel 12, constituting the front edge of this type ofthe door. The binders thusin'terlock the front edge of the door and walland positively prevent movement of said front away from the wall. K p pThe bottom of? the The chain movement at right angles to the wall by theusual bracket 27 carrying a roller 28 which rests against the lower rearcorner of the door when closed, and by the lowermost binder at the frontedge of the door. The full length of the door between the roller and thehanger nearest the rear edge of the door has ordinarily been leftwithout means for securing it to the wall, and it is obvious that when afire starts on one side of the door, the space on the other sidemaintains its normal tei'nperature and pressure, while the fire changesboth and may produce such a great inequality of conditions on oppositesides of the door as to bulge out or buckle the rear ed 'e of the door,even when the frame is of the most rigid construction.

I, therefore, provide at least one movable binder at the rear edge ofthe door intermediate the top and bottom edges and means for operatingthis binder to interlock the rear edge of the door and the wall when thedoor is closed. F or high doors I prefer to use three binders, shown asthe hook shaped catches 29 which are fast on the vertical shaft 30. Theshaft 30 is journalled for rotation in suitable brackets secured to thechannel 12. At the side of the doorway adjacent the rear edge of thedoor when closed, I cut out recesses in position to receive the catches29 when operated, and cover the recesses with the apert-ured anchorageplates 32. The central movable binder, located at about the midpoint ofthe rear edge of the door, is held fast to shaft by a pin 33 whichextends somewhat beyond the surface of the catch but not enough tostrike the channel flange when the shaft is rotated. The other catcheswhen used are rigidly mounted on the shaft by set screws 34.

To operate the movable binders in response to closing movement of thedoor, I preferably provide an operating bar 35 which has an opening 36near one end in which the projecting portion of pin 33 is seated. Thebar 35 extends transversely of the door, it being slidable in apertures37 in the frame members and reinforcing channels The front end 38 of theoperating bar is bent over beyond the web portion of the front edgechannel 12 into position to abut the offset portion 26 of one of thebinders 2a. In construction having spaced frame members covered bysheathing plates, such as shown, the operating bar passes within thedoor between the sheathing plates, so that no change is made in theappearance of the door and there is no likelihood of the movable binderoperating mechanism being tampered with or otherwise damaged. L

lVhen the link 23 fuses and the door moves down the track to its closedposition, the end of the stationary binder 24, opposite the bent-overend 38 of the operating bar,

strikes the operating bar and moves it from the position shown in Fig. lj ust before the door is fully closed) into the position shown in Fig.3. This movementof the operating bar moves the pin and thus rotateatheshaft in a clockwisedirection and SW] the hook portions 39 of themovable binders into interlocking engagen'ient with their respectiveanchorage plates 32. Q j-f yi it is impossible to move the rear edge orthe door away from the wall while the movable binders are in engagementwith the anchorage plates. I I

In orC er to permit free movement of the door along the trackindependently of the condition of operation of the movable binders, Iprefer to provide means responsive to opening movement of the door fordisengaging the catches 29 from their anchorages. In the presentinstance I have shown. a spring i0 coiled about the shaft 30, having oneend fast to the shaft and the other end secured to one of thejournalling brackets 31; The tension of the spring is such as to rotatthe shaft in an anti clockwise direction whenever the pressure of thestationary binder 24 is removed from the operating bar A pin ll in thebracket 31 acts as a stop for the shaft pin. 33 to limit such binderretracting movement of the shaft The apertures in the anchorage plates-32 are made wide enough to give ample clearance to the hooked ends 39of the mov: ble binders 29 as opening movement of the door is begun. Itwill be apparent that opening of the door is as free with my movablebinder construction as it would be without such equipment. E

In Figs. 6, 7 and 8 I have shown my invention applied to a the door ofsomewhat different construction. As the general prin ciple is the sameas in the construction previously described, I have designated similarparts with like reference characters and need only describe the specificdifferences between the constructions. The door 42 has an outside framemade up of the T-rails 4-3, which are beveled at their ends and firmlyunited either by welding or by the gusset plates 4-1, or both. Thereinforcing channels 45 are centrally slotted at opposite ends toreceive the web portions of the frame rails 4-3. The reinforcingchannels are positioned in parallel vertical relation at suitableintervals, and are secured to the top and bottom frame rails by bolts orrivets 46 which pass through registering holes in the flange portion ofthe reinforcing channels and the web portion of the frame rails. Thedoor hangers 4:7 carry the usual rollers .8, but are bent over at theirlower ends to form the attaching plates 4-9 which are socured directlyto the edge of the frame rail by welding, or otherwise. The sheathingplates 50 on the side of the door towards the wall are lapped around theedges of the fr me rails, the edges of'the sheaths being crimped over,as shown at 51. The opposite sheathing plates 52 pass completely aroundthe edges ofthe door, and are secured by rivets or'bolts 46 to thereinforcing channels nearest the front and rear edges, respectively, ofthe door.

In this construction the stationary binders 53 must be offsetsufficiently to overlap the entire thickness of the door, so that theygrip the surfaceof the door opposite the wall instead of the innerflange of the channel frame, as in the previously describedconstruction. The brackets 54: have vertical angle portions which aresecured directly to the rear edge of the door outside the sheathing. Inthis construction also, the operating bar 35 is housed within the doorbetween the sheathing sheets. The movable binders and their operatingmechanism are similar to those already described, but the specific shapeofthe catches 55 must be slightly different from the catches 29 in ordercorrectly to engage the anchorage plates 32 as seen most clearly in Fig.8.

\Vhile I have described my invention as applied to two types of firedoors, it is obvious that they are applicable to all types of tire doorswhich slide along a track between open and closed position. In somecases the operating bar might not be housed with in the door; forexample, if the door were solid. While three stationary and threemovable binders have been shown. it will be aparent that any desirednumber may be provided without changing the operation of the binders. Incase only one movable binder is employed, it should be located abouthalfway between the top and bottom edges, and the shaft 30 becomes ashort pin. With this construction, the catch 29 need no!" be affixed tothe shaft so long as it is movable with the pin 33, but the spring 40should always be arranged to interconnect some part movable with thecatch and some fixed portion of the door, so as to retract the movablebinder when the door is at all open. other changes in detail willsuggest themselves to those skilled in door construction, without in anymanner departing from the spirit of the invention.

What I claim as new is:

1. In door construction, a wall having a doorway, a sliding door toclose the doorway having an edgewise movement of translation only, afixed abutment, and means operated by engagement with the abutment tobind the rear edge of the door to the wall in response to closingmovement of the door.

2. The combination with a door slidable to close a doorway in a wall anda binder on the wall to engage one edge of the door when closed, of abinoer on the door at its opposite ecge, and, means responsive toengagement no frictional resistance to the movements'of the door atleastduring the greater part of the opening and closing movements.

4. In door construction, 'a wall having a doorway, a sliding door toclose the doorway,"a catch pivoted at the rear edge of the door formovement towards the wall, an anchorage on the wall in position to be engaged by the catch when the door is closed and the catch operated, acatch operating member extending beyond a portion of the front edge ofthe door, and an abutment in the path of movement of the operatingmember to actuate the same as the door slides into closed position.

5. In door construction, a wall having a doorway, a sliding door toclose the doorway, a catch on the rear edge of the door, an anchoragemember on the wall, catch operating means housed within the door to movethe catch into engagement with the anchorage member, and a member on thewall to actuate the catch operator as the door closes.

6. In door construction, a door adapted for sliding movement relative toa wall to close a doorway therein, a hook shaped catch rotatably mountedat one of the side edges of the door and adapted to engage an anchoragein the wall, an operating bar extending from the catch across the doorand projecting beyond part of the opposite side edge of the door, andmeans connecting the bar and catch, whereby movement of the bar towardsthe catch will rotate the same to en gage an anchorage in the wall whenthe door is mounted next to a wall having an anchorage.

7. In door construction, a door adapted for sliding movement relative toa wall to close a doorway therein, a hook shaped catch. mounted at oneside edge of the door for rotation about an axis parallel to said edge,a spring urging said catch to rotate away from the wall, and anoperating bar connected to the catch and extending transversely of thedoor beyond the opposite edge thereof, said bar being adapted to bepushed by a member projecting from the wall as the door closes, andthereby to move said catch into engagement with an anchorage on thewall, and said spring restoring the catch and bar to normal positionwhen the member ceases to push the bar.

8. In doc-r construction, a wall having a doorway, a door comprising a.frame and spaced sheathing plates secured to opposite sides of theframe, means for supporting the door for sliding movement to close thedoorway, a binder on the wall to grip the front edge of the door whenclosed, an anchorage on the wall adjacent the rear edge of the door whenclosed, a movable binder on the door to engage the anchorage, and meanshoused between the opposite sheathing plates in position to be actuatedby the wall binder to operate the movable binder as the front edge ofthe door closes against the wall binder.

9. In door construction, the combination with a wall having a doorway, adoor movable to close the doorway, a plurality of spaced binders on thewall at one side of the doorway in position to engage the front edge ofthe door when closed, a rotatable shaft extending along the rear ec geof the door, a plurality of spaced anchorages on the wall at the side ofthe doorway opposite the binders, a plurality of hook shaped catchesfast on the shaft and in position to engage the anchorages when the dooris closed and the shaft rotated, and means for rotating the shaft as thedoor moves into closed position.

Signed at New York, New York this 11th day of December 1923.

ARTHUR H. DODGE.

